300 N Broadway, Lexington, KY 40508, United States
Morgan attended Transylvania University in the mid-1840s.
300 N Broadway, Lexington, KY 40508, United States
Morgan attended Transylvania University in the mid-1840s.
John Morgan was born on June 1, 1825, in Huntsville, Alabama, United States. His father, Calvin Cogswell Morgan, a merchant, was a Virginian; his mother, Henrietta, was the daughter of John W. Hunt, an influential businessman of Lexington, Kentucky. About 1830 the Morgans moved to a farm in the neighborhood of that city.
John received public school education in Lexington. He attended Transylvania University in the mid-1840s.
John Hunt Morgan enlisted for the Mexican War in 1846 and saw service at Buena Vista. Morgan prospered in business and, retaining his interest in military affairs, organized, in 1857, the Lexington Rifles.
In September 1861 he joined the Confederate army and immediately became a scout. Elected a captain, he was given a squadron to command, and early in 1862 began his famous raids, during which he harassed the Federals by penetrating their lines, capturing men and trains, and destroying supplies.
He became a colonel on April 4, 1862, took part in the Shiloh campaign, and then started a raid, beginning near Iuka, Mississippi, in which he fought near Columbia, Tennessee, on May 1, taking 400 prisoners, but was badly defeated at Lebanon on May 5 by Federal cavalry under General Dumont. Nothing daunted, he rallied his men, and advanced into Kentucky, on May 11 reaching Cave City, where he wrecked the railroad and burned important stores.
In June he was placed at the head of a brigade, with which, starting from near Knoxville, Tennessee, July 4, 1862, he raided extensively in Kentucky, marching more than 1, 000 miles, taking hundreds of prisoners and enormous stocks of supplies, and returning safely to his base. Morgan acted rapidly, he fought hard to secure his objectives, then split his command, striking right and left to confuse his enemies. He withdrew quickly, avoiding fighting wherever possible. During the remainder of 1862, he raided the country between Nashville, Louisville, and Cincinnati.
On December 7 he captured a Federal force at Hartsville, Tennessee, taking over 1, 700 prisoners. For this victory, he was appointed brigadier-general and given the command of a cavalry division.
He started a new series of raids in March 1863 and on May 1 the Confederate Congress gave him a vote of thanks for his "varied, heroic and invaluable services."
In June 1863 he secured authority from Gen. Joe Wheeler to raid Kentucky with 2, 000 men. Nothing was said about going beyond Kentucky, but Morgan had that project in mind. Starting July 2, he crossed Ohio into Indiana six days later. Pursued by superior forces, he commenced a wild ride through the suburbs of Cincinnati, and east. The ride was so fast, fifty to sixty miles a day, and his column was so harassed by swarms of home guards, that Morgan's men became exhausted, with the result that when their pursuers caught up with them on July 19, near Buffington Island, most of the command surrendered. Morgan himself rode on but was surrounded near New Lisbon, Ohio, and on July 26 surrendered. This raid destroyed Morgan's division and inflicted only minor losses upon the Federals, but it drew large Federal forces from in front of Bragg's army and saved East Tennessee to the Confederacy for several months.
Escaping from the Ohio State Penitentiary, Columbus, Ohio, on November 26, Morgan was assigned in April 1864 to command the Department of Southwest Virginia. His forces were poorly equipped and badly disciplined, but he restored order and organized an efficient force, with which he raided Kentucky in June. This raid had some success, but losses were severe, and the troops committed excesses, which led to dissatisfaction on the part of the Confederate government over Morgan's failure to discover and punish the culprits.
On September 3, 1864, Morgan decided to attack Federal forces near Knoxville, Tennessee and encamped that evening at Greenville. In the night a Federal force passed unnoticed into his lines. Entering the town early the next morning, Morgan was surprised and killed while endeavoring to join his men. His body was buried at Abington, subsequently interred at Richmond, Virginia, and finally buried in Lexington, Kentucky.
John Hunt Morgan was a remarkable Confederate guerrilla leader of "Morgan’s Raiders," best known for his July 1863 attacks in Indiana and Ohio - the farthest north a Confederate force penetrated during the American Civil War. Numerous schools, bridges, and other places are named in his honor. A statue was erected in Pomeroy, Ohio, for the effect he had on the town and its people.
Quotations:
"It is made the duty of every Commanding Officer in the Department, to arrest and send to these Headquarters, under guard, every officer or soldier who may be found absent from his command, without the regular leave in writing, prescribed by Regulations and General Orders."
"The Home Guards are required to come in at once and deliver up their arms, those who fail to do so will be regarded as enemies of the Government and treated accordingly."
In 1846, John Morgan became a Freemason, at Daviess Lodge #22, Lexington, Kentucky.
Gentle and generous, John Morgan was bold in thought and action. He was a thorn to his enemies, not because of military genius, but on account of untiring energy and continuous devotion to his cause.
In 1848, John Morgan married Rebecca Gratz Bruce, who soon became a confirmed invalid and died on July 21, 1861. The couple had two children, who died in infancy.
On December 14, 1862, Morgan married Martha "Mattie" Ready, the daughter of Tennessee United States Representative Charles Ready and a cousin of William T. Haskell, another former United States representative from Tennessee. They had one daughter.
Furthermore, he had at least one slave son, Sidney Morgan, by a slave woman.
1801-1854
1805-1891
1827-1882
1834-1920
1836-1918
1839-1912
1840-1909
1844-1863
1845-1878
1830-1861
1865-1888
